The Israeli attacks on Shiite militia targets in Lebanon on Sunday were “not the last word,” Netanyahu said at a cabinet meeting. “We are hitting Hezbollah with surprise, devastating blows.”
The Israeli army destroyed thousands of Hezbollah short-range rockets, “all of which were intended to hit our civilians and armed forces,” Netanyahu said. In addition, the Israeli army intercepted “all drones” that Hezbollah launched “at a strategic target in central Israel.”
Netanyahu did not say what the target was. According to Israeli media reports, Hezbollah had targeted the headquarters of the foreign intelligence service Mossad in Tel Aviv.
Almost four weeks after the killing of its military chief Fuad Shukr, Hezbollah carried out a major attack on Israel on Sunday morning – but declared it over after just a few hours. The Shiite militia, supported by Tehran, said it attacked northern Israel with more than 300 rockets. A state of emergency was declared in Israel, but most of the restrictions were later relaxed.
The Israeli army, for its part, reported preventive attacks on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. Around a hundred fighter jets were reportedly deployed. Most of the numerous militia rocket launchers hit in southern Lebanon were aimed at northern Israel, it said. However, some were also targeting central Israel. Netanyahu promised to “do everything” to protect his country. The “simple rule applies: whoever hurts us, we hurt them.”
